TUF Brazil 3: Episode 4 Recap

The episode begins in the immediate aftermath of Wagnao’s win last week over Peregrino. Instead of celebrating together, Team Wanderlei has a disagreement. Marmota is angry with the way Paulo Costa acted during the fight. He thought Costa was being far too critical of Wagnao and should have spent his time cheering their teammate instead of criticizing. Costa tries to explain he just thought that Wagnao lost the first round he wasn’t trying to insult him. He does, however, insults Marmota and questions his intelligence. Coach Wanderlei calls the whole thing a misunderstanding and tries to smooth things over. The two teammates shake hands, but they don’t come to an agreement.

We shift focus to this week’s heavyweight bout between Antonio Carlos Junior aka Cara de Sapato (“Shoe Face”) and Edgard Castaldelli. Edgard thinks his key to victory will be in the stand-up game. Ol’ Shoe Face is a world champion Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner and Edgard wants to avoid bringing the fight to the ground. He describes himself as “cold and calculating,” and his tactics will bring a win to Team Sonnen. He also talks about how he considers himself different from other fighters and we get what has to be the first Protestant Reformation reference in TUF history. In addition to worrying about Martin Luther’s contributions to modern religion, he has some personal worries. His wife is currently pregnant with their first born and he stresses about not being able to support her. Assistant coach Hortencia sees the pressure he’s placing on himself and tries to calm him down. Edgard appreciates her taking time to talk to him and describes her as “a mother to us here.”

Next we hear from Antonio and his life story. He considers himself unlike many of the other fighters because he wasn’t born poor and he has a strong family structure. He doesn’t need to fight, but it’s his dream to compete. His life hasn’t been all privilege, though. In 2011 a close friend of his was murdered and it hit him very hard. Soon afterward he started having panic attacks and a constant fear of death enveloped him. He even stopped training completely. Over time he overcame these fears and returned to martial arts. To beat Edgard, he plans on striking at a distance and being cautious. After pacing himself on the feet, he’ll shoot in for the takedown and finish with some ground and pound.

The assistant coaches then put the teams through exercises that you probably saw at your company’s last retreat. Isabel runs though Team Wanderlei through a communication drill and Hortencia utilizes her basketball background to break up the monotony of training. No word on if Chael and Wanderlei will do trust falls next week.

Besides the assistant coaches, the head coaches seem to be making strong impressions on their fighters. Wanderlei comes over to the house for Wagnao’s victory barbecue and “ate and drank like a beast,” as Marmota elegantly describes. We also learn that the “Axe Murderer” can add world class foosball player to his list of accomplishments. Chael Sonnen’s attention to his team and strong coaching has also converted some people to the “dark side.” Slowly but surely, Chael is starting to make some friends in Brazil.

We catch a brief glimpse into each team’s training, weigh-ins go off without a hitch and it’s fight time!

ROUND ONE

Antonio throws a right hook and you can hear it echo throughout the gym. Edgard drops, Antonio jumps on him and moves to a beatdown position. He lands a couple more follow up shots and the referee jumps in to call off the fight. Shoe Face moves to the second round with one punch.

Chael has the understatement of the season when he remarks. “Antonio has a very dangerous skill set.” Most of all, he feels bad that Edgard didn’t have the chance to showcase his skills. Wanderlei revels in his second straight team victory. He believes that Edgar was so worried about going to the ground with Antonio that it left the perfect opening for the punch to land.

The two coaches shake hands, but Wanderlei warns us not to read too much into it. He doesn’t forget an insult and he’ll make sure Chael Sonnen pays for his transgressions. Chael seems more annoyed than anything else. As he puts it, he has two battles to fight. Not only does he have to be there for his fighter, but he also has to, “Pat Wanderlei on the head,” so he’ll come back tomorrow and not quit the show.

Despite losing the fight, Team Sonnen has a second chance at redemption. Normally the winning team chooses the next fight, but this time it will be decided by a physical challenge. Pezao and Jollyson square off in a mud pit with a giant soccer ball. Whoever pushes the ball into the opposing goal wins. It’s a tough back and forth battle and the two stalemate for the majority of the match. Jollyson ultimately wins and Team Wanderlei maintains control.

We quickly move to the fight announcement and it will be Team Wanderlei’s Ricardo Abreu aka “Demente and Team Sonnen’s Guilherme Vasconcelos aka “Bomba.” Chael thinks Bomba could win the entire tournament. Wanderlei knows that it will be a tough fight because both men are BJJ champions, but believes that Ricardo’s physical strength will be the difference maker.

We close with a sneak peek into next week’s show. Can Team Sonnen get their first win? Do the assistant coaches start feuding? Will they have to have an intervention for Wanderlei? Find out this and more next week on The Ultimate Fighter Brazil!

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